Headlines

• Invesco Bought Williams Tower for $412M [GlobeSt.com]
• Aldi Announces First 9 Store Locations [abc13; previously on Swamplot]
• Austin Firm Buys 1,000-Acre Pointe West Resort for $1.65M in Foreclosure Auction [Galveston County Daily News ($)]
• Architect Michael Gaertner Leaves 9-Story Seawall Hotel Project [Galveston County Daily News ($)]
• While Pearland Waits for New Killen’s BBQ, Killen’s Steakhouse To Sell Barbecue Starting March 30 [Eater Houston]
• 414,000 Harris County Workers Commute from Neighboring Counties, Finds Census Data [The Highwayman]
• Texas Bill Banning Texting and Driving Advances to Full House for Consideration [MyFoxHouston]

Photo of I-45 along Pierce Street: Russell Hancock via Swamplot

• Houston Top Metro for Corporate Relocations, Expansions [Site Selection via Houston Business Journal]
• Preservationist: Astrodome the Eiffel Tower of Houston, Should Be Saved [Culturemap; previously on Swamplot]
• League City Outlines $428K of Beautification Projects [Galveston County Daily News ($)]
• City Tweaks Traffic Management Plan To Prevent Gridlock During Spring Break [Houston Chronicle]
• Artist Konstantin Dimopoulos Seeking Volunteers To Help Paint Houston’s Trees Blue [Glasstire]
• Breaking Down Houston’s New $440K Tourism Campaign [New York Times]

Photo of Downtown: Russell Hancock via Swamplot Flickr Pool

• Fiesta Mart Planning Sugar Land Store in Former Gerland’s [Prime Property]
• Downtown’s Alden Hotel Changes Name Back to Sam Houston Hotel [abc13]
• Connect Transit Riders Call for Longer Service Hours, Farther Destinations [Galveston County Daily News ($)]
• Sugar Land Reports 58 Percent Fewer Wrecks at Intersections with Red-Light Cameras [Houston Chronicle]
• Take the 2040 Regional Transportation Survey [Houston Tomorrow]
• Woodlands Officials To Decide Who Owns Lake Woodlands [Woodlands Villager]
• Sam Houston Park’s Cemetery Past Remembered as Electricians Unearth Cast-Iron Coffins [Houston Chronicle ($)]
• Moderate Drought Conditions Threaten Houston [Click2Houston]
• An Interview with Breakfast Klub Obama Muralist Reginald Adams [Glasstire; previously on Swamplot]
• Texas’ Odd, Obvious State Symbols [Houston Chronicle ($)]

Photo of East Downtown: Alex Luster via Swamplot Flickr Pool

• Downtown Ramen Shop Goro & Gun To Open Within the Next Month [Eating Our Words; previously on Swamplot]
• 16 New Bike-Sharing Locations Opening Week of March 25 in Montrose, Midtown, Museum District [Hair Balls]
• University Blvd. Now Connects Highway 59 to State Highway 6 in Fort Bend County [Click2Houston]
• More I-69 Signs Going Up on U.S. 59 Between 610 West Loop, Rosenberg Over Next Few Months [KUHF]
• Houston Lacks Timely, Convenient Passenger Train Service to Other Cities, Finds Study [Houston Chronicle ($)]
• Otto Pech House in First Ward, River Oaks’ Montgomery-Reynolds House Receive Historic Designations [Houston Style Magazine]

Photo of Reliant Park: Alex Luster via Swamplot Flickr Pool

• The Woodlands Resort & Conference Center’s $95M Renovation To Include Steakhouse and Lazy River [Prime Property]
• Fat Cat Creamery to Open Ice Cream Shop in the Heights [Eater Houston]
• South Loop Business Owners Say They’re Losing Customers Because of Rodeo Parking [MyFoxHouston]
• Reading the Fine Print on Downtown’s Hopper Parking Pass [Hair Balls]
• The Story Behind Why Westheimer Dance Club Numbers Is Called Numbers [Rocks Off]

Photo of construction at Buffalo Bayou: Candace Garcia

• Delays for Killen’s Heights Steakhouse, Pearland BBQ Restaurant [29-95.com]
• Bikeshare Stations Now Open at Downtown YMCA, Ensemble/HCC Light Rail Stop; Many More To Come [The Highwayman]
• Missouri City Residents’ Input Wanted For Bicycle, Pedestrian Mobility Plan [Sugar Land Sun]
• League City Swaps Oak Tree for Sailboats in New Logo [Galveston County Daily News ($)]
• Stringfellow Orchards in Hitchcock Added to National Register of Historical Places [Galveston County Daily News ($)]
• Dry Fall Might Mean Fewer Bluebonnets [Click2Houston]
• Does Light Rail Really Encourage People to Stop Driving? [Atlantic Cities]

Photo near SculpturWorx Studio: Alex Luster via Swamplot Flickr Pool

• Texas Instruments Breaks Ground on $35M Sugar Land Facility [Houston Business Journal]
• Pointe West Development in Galveston Listed for Foreclosure Sale Again [Galveston County Daily News ($)]
• KB Home Now Building Models With Dual-Sided Fireplaces, Large Island Kitchens, 3-Story Garages [Houston Chronicle ($)]
• Metro Rail Expansion About 70 Percent Complete as Main Street Bridge Reopens [KUHF]
• SRO Sports Bar Near Northwest Mall Closing After 27 Years; Owner Points to Highway 290 Widening Project as Catalyst [29-95.com]
• Houston Quality of Life in Jeopardy Unless Current City Planning, Sustainable Growth Addressed, Says Rice Report [Rice News]
• Houston Makes Case for Highest Standard of Living in the World [Opportunity Urbanist]

Photo: Candace Garcia via Swamplot Flickr Pool

• Luxury Movie Theater ‘Seriously Looking At’ Old Books-A-Million Spot at Houston Pavilions [Culturemap; previously on Swamplot]
• Houston Has Fastest-Growing Economy in the US, According to Federal Numbers [abc13]
• State-Maintained Highways Are in Better Shape Than They Were 10 Years Ago, Finds Study [Houston Chronicle ($)]
• Texas Lawmakers Have Put No Money into Budget for Developing New State Parks for a Decade [Houston Chronicle ($)]
• Gilchrist Seeking Eminent Domain to Shut Down Popular Rolling Rollover Pass Fishing Spot [Galveston County Daily News ($)]
• Port Considering Higher Cruise Access Fees [Galveston County Daily News ($)]
• Heights Church’s Music, Construction Sparks Noise Complaints from Neighbors [Houston Chronicle]
• Volunteer Works To Clean Up Olivewood, Houston’s First African-American Cemetery [Houston Chronicle]
• Experts Urge Drivers To Consider Safety When Pulling Over To Snap Bluebonnet Photos [Houston Chronicle]

Photo of Hermann Park: Bill Barfield via Swamplot

• Houston’s Flurry of New Construction Paves Way for Booming Demolition Business [Houston Business Journal ($)]
• Novel City Proposal Would Give Incentives, Possibly Require Businesses To Provide Bike Parking [Houston Chronicle ($)]
• TxDOT To Widen FM 1097 through Willis from Texas 75 West to I-45 [Courier of Montgomery County]
• Clean Bathrooms One Reason for Buc-ee’s Becoming Texas Phenomenon [Click2Houston]

Photo: Candace Garcia via Swamplot Flickr Pool

• Houston One of 35 U.S. Cities Invited To Join 2024 Olympic Bid Process [Houston Business Journal]
• Construction To Begin Next Week on UTMB’s $82M ER in League City [Houston Chronicle]
• City Received More Than 4,000 Complaints from People Living in 1,700 Apartment Complexes Over Past 15 Months [Houston Chronicle ($); interactive map here]
• Closed Since August 2011 for Light Rail Expansion, Main Street Bridge North of Downtown Reopening on Monday [The Highwayman]
• Metro Considering Bringing Back Daypasses for Bus, Train Riders [Houston Chronicle]
• Freebirds Soon Opening 23rd Location in Region at Highway 249 and Spring Cypress [Houston Business Journal]
• Zoës Kitchen Opening Another Houston Location Next Month at Louetta Near Tomball Pkwy. [Houston Business Journal]
• Woodlands Township Still Dealing with Removal, Replacement of Dead Trees [Courier of Montgomery County]
• Revisiting Robertson Stadium’s Forgotten Concert History [Rocks Off; previously on Swamplot]

Photo of Greenway Plaza: Bill Barfield via Swamplot Flickr Pool

• Home Sales Up Nearly 30% in January, Inventory at 13-Year Low [Prime Property]
• D’Agostino Cos. To Break Ground on Woodlands’ Vision Park Plaza Next Quarter [Houston Business Journal]
• Camden To Move Headquarters, Expand Footprint in Greenway Plaza [Houston Business Journal]
• Demand for West Houston Office Space ‘Continues at an Unrelenting Pace,’ Says Real Estate Exec [Houston Business Journal]
• Washington Avenue Sports Bar Sawyer Park Closes [Rocks Off; previously on Swamplot]
• Galveston’s West End Gets New Lime Green Fire Station [Galveston County Daily News ($)]
• SugarDaddie.com Raises Sugar Land Renaming Offer to $4.65M, Mayor Still Says No [Click2Houston]
• Texas Mayors Lobby Lawmakers To Invest $2B in Water-Supply Projects [Houston Chronicle ($)]
• Pilings That Pose Boating Hazard To Be Removed from Galveston Bay [KUHF]
• Westheimer, San Felipe Bridges Over Drainage Channel Near Galleria To Close Over Coming Months [abc13]
• Woodland Heights Gets New Street Signs 20 Months After Historic District Status Approved [Home in the Heights]
• Galveston Arts Center Needs $1M To Repair Damages from Ike, Reopen on the Strand [Houston Chronicle]
• Artist Konstantin Dimopoulos Arriving Next Month To Paint Houston Trees Blue [Glasstire]
• Breakfast Klub Owner Says He Will Never Stop Repairing Obama Mural If Vandalized [Houston Chronicle; previously on Swamplot]

Photo of abandoned apartment complex at Ley and East Houston: o texano via Swamplot Flickr Pool

• Post-Ike, Expensive New Houses Replacing Fishing Camps on Bolivar Peninsula [Houston Chronicle ($)]
• Galveston Go-Kart Center, Arcade Now Open [Galveston County Daily News ($)]
• Landry’s Opens Bubba Gump at Kemah Boardwalk [Galveston County Daily News ($)]
• Mexican Steakhouse Opens in Former La Strada Location on Lower Westheimer[29-95.com; previously on Swamplot]
• TxDOT Conducting Safety Review Following 4 Truck Wrecks in 1 Month on I-10 North of Downtown [Houston Chronicle ($)]
• Galleria Rebounds from All-Star Madness [Houston Chronicle]
• Downtown Galveston Businesses Frustrated by Barricades Put Up By Weekend Festivals [Galveston County Daily News ($)]
• More Than One-Quarter of Galveston’s Water Meters are Malfunctioning [Galveston County Daily News ($)]
• Breakfast Klub Owner May Have Thwarted Yet Another Obama Mural Attack [Houston Chronicle; previously on Swamplot]
• How the University of Houston Became Home of the Food Trucks [Hair Balls]
• Does Hotel ZaZa Have a Hidden Dungeon-Themed Room They Don’t Want You to Know About? [Hair Balls]

Photo at Sam Houston Tollway and I-10: Bill Barfield via Swamplot Flickr Pool

• Regent Square To Start Development on Phase Two Later This Year [Houston Business Journal; previously on Swamplot]
• Galveston Council To Ask For Permission To Use Scholes International Airport as a Racetrack [Galveston County Daily News ($)]
• Galveston Reviving Plans To Install Bike Paths Around the City [Galveston County Daily News ($)]
• Ike Dike Project Gets Financial Boost with Funding for Economic Studies [KUHF; previously on Swamplot]
• Some Lawmakers Upset That Texas Tax Funds Helped Pay for Toyota Center’s New $8M TV [abc13]
• Major Street Closings for This Weekend’s NBA All Star Events [The Highwayman]
• Great Egret Found Walking Around Beaumont With Arrow In It [Hair Balls]

Photo: o texano via Swamplot Flickr Pool

• Midtown Alamo Drafthouse Opening in Regent Square, Will Also Screen Movies in Park [Houston Chronicle ($), previously on Swamplot]
• Cassidy Turley Scores Phoenix Tower Leasing Assignment [Houston Business Journal]
• Luxury Apartments on the Rise in League City [Galveston County Daily News ($)]
• Apartment Activity Added $4.5B to Houston Economy in 2011, Finds Report [Houston Business Journal]
• Holman Apartments Progress Report After 4 Months, $200K Worth of Renovations [Fat Property; previously on Swamplot]
• New Crop of Talent Bringing Downtown’s 300 Block of Main Street Back to Life [Houston Chronicle]
• NBA All-Star Game Puts Houston in National Spotlight [KUHF]

Photo of Sports Authority, Post Oak Shopping Center: Stuart Rosenberg

• Rice University To Build New Center for the Arts with Help from $20M Moody Foundation Award [Houston Business Journal]
• Sprouts Openings Set for April in Spring Cypress Village, July in Copperfield [Houston Chronicle; previously on Swamplot]
• Michael Jordan Renting Houston’s Museum of Fine Arts for His 50th Birthday Party During NBA All-Star Weekend [CultureMap; previously on Swamplot]
• Wells Fargo Plaza’s Gigantic Blow-Up Basketball, Hoop Tribute to the NBA All-Star Game [CultureMap]
• Swimming at Bolivar’s Beaches Discouraged After High Bacteria Levels Reported Off Peninsula [Houston Chronicle]
• Resolution To Kill League City Plan To Add Medians to FM 518 Tabled [Galveston County Daily News ($)]
• Rodeo Parade Starting Point, Route Changed Due To Issue with Under-Construction Metro Rail [abc13]
• Sugar Land Turns Down $500K Offer From Dating Website To Rename City SugarDaddie.com [Houston Business Journal]

Photo of Wells Fargo Plaza: emporio86